by Amy Atwell
Still, if tonight were anything like last night, comfort and mobility were going to be more important than style. She shuddered at the memory of having to run down that apartment building’s musty stairwell barefoot.
“Drinking coffee at this hour will keep you awake all night, you know.” Officer Foote handed her the coffee shop’s logoed cup.
“That’s rather the point.” She motioned for him to give over the little packets of cream.
“Are you going to tell me what we’re doing here?”
“I’m here to meet my sisters and play slots.” She poured some cream into her cup. “You’re just following me.”
“I was hoping for the truth this time.”
She tilted her head to regard his earnest face from beneath her cap. “I don’t think that’s likely, do you?”
He took a step back. “I suppose not.”
“Buck up. I don’t think we’re going to get into any danger tonight. Just hang out at the casino with the girls.” She smiled at him. While she hadn’t liked the idea of a shadow, especially one in uniform, he did make her feel safer. But she also knew if she told him she were tracking Mickey and her father, he’d tell Hunter in a heartbeat. Mickey wasn’t going to arrest her father, but she wasn’t so sure about Hunter.
The police had a long list of questions for Cosmo Fortune, but they were going to have to wait in line behind Iris and her sisters.
“There you are!”
Iris looked up to see Cory hurrying toward her. The brunette had likewise chosen running shoes and a green jogging suit. Her long dark curls were pulled into a knot at the back of her head. “Wow, you weren’t kidding with that description. ‘Look for the young, earnest police officer near my store.’ He’s like a beacon.”
“That’s it.” Iris shooed Foote away. “Go stand over there. I don’t need you calling attention to us.” He retreated, but she didn’t trust the speculation in his eye. She turned to her sister. “Is Allie coming?”
“She said she would, but she’s got a show tonight. Second curtain went up at ten-thirty.” Cory studied her, a hint of fire in her eyes. “She’s angry with you, you know.”
“Allie?” Iris blinked. “What did I do?”
“She said she met your cousins, but you wouldn’t admit she was your sister.”
She vented a groan of frustration. “I don’t need this tonight. They came halfway around the world to meet me, and they think I’m Cosmo’s only child. They already know he’s a jewel thief, I shouldn’t have to explain his marriages to them—he needs to do that himself. Honestly, I could just kill him.”
Cory’s back stiffened. “We don’t know that Papa stole anything.”
“According to my Aunt Tatiana, he stole the gems from her.”
“Then we need to find him, so he can explain.”
“That’s why we’re here.” Iris sat in the padded chair facing the giant sevens on the slot machine. Finally she turned to Cory. “Was she really upset?”
With a sigh, Cory slumped into the chair beside her. “Look, we’re all trying to figure out what it means to be sisters. Now you’ve got these cousins, but Allie’s got no one but Papa and us.”
“What about you?” Iris stared down into her coffee. “I mean, according to that sheet the police gave us, none of us had any close family other than Cosmo.”
Cory regarded her as if trying to gauge whether or not she was worthy of trust.
Iris held her breath, afraid of what her sister might decide.
“What the hell,” Cory said on an exhalation. “Allie already knows, so I may as well tell you. But this is my problem. No one but me talks to Papa about it.”
“What?” Iris pushed aside any hurt at being left out of the loop. Apparently she was going to be let in on it now.
“My mother isn’t dead like that police report said. She’s very much alive.”
***
Cosmo slipped down the back service hallway. Midnight or noon, didn’t matter, this hallway was always the same, with its off-white walls and glaring overhead lights. Bare, utilitarian and, thankfully, devoid of people. Normally, he wouldn’t have bothered to avoid the security guards—most of the guys knew him as Iris’s father—but things were more dicey now that the police had released that APB on him.
He slipped the key into the door of Lying Eyes. Once inside, he turned to the alarm system, only to discover it hadn’t been set. Alerted, he peered around the dark workroom. Someone was here. “Iris?”
“She’s not here, you old trickster, you’re stuck with me. And I think you and I have a little unfinished business.”
The light over the worktable snapped on, momentarily blinding Cosmo with the unexpected brightness. When his vision cleared, he found Mickey silhouetted, his back to the light, a gun in his hand.
Three goddamn nights of this, and he was right back where he started—Mickey had the drop on him.
“If you came back for the stones, Iris has them for safekeeping.”
“I left her a note to tell her I would be back for them.”
“She found your note, but I think she wants to talk with you in person.”
I bet she does. Cosmo ran his tongue over his teeth while his mind raced with how to play this. “Mickey, you know the kind of people we’re dealing with. Help me get the stones back from Iris. Once I finish this transaction, I’ll explain everything to her.”
“No deal. Iris has decided they need to be returned to their rightful owner.”
Cosmo closed his eyes at the thought. “Oh, God, has she met them?”
“We’ve all met them. I hear Aunt Tatiana’s taken quite a shine to Edgar.”
His eyes snapped open again. “No! She can’t keep him. I mean, I need him. Where’s his collar?”
“Relax,” Mickey said with a chuckle. “Man, you don’t miss a trick, do you? Iris has the rabbit and his collar back at her place.”
“Then, you found the alexandrite?” Despite the dangers he still faced, Cosmo couldn’t ignore the disappointment. He’d really wanted to pull this one off.
“How could we miss it? Now we just need you to explain why you’ve led us all on this merry chase.”
Cosmo smiled ruefully. “It’s been fun, hasn’t it?”
“Fun?” The silhouette shook its head. “You really are warped.”
A sound from the hallway made Mickey switch off the lamp. The two of them strained to hear if someone were still outside.
“Did you relock the door?” Mickey asked in a whisper.
“No. I figured I’d be in and out.” Cosmo took a step backward. At this hour, anyone coming through that door was likely to have a gun, and Mickey was his best bet at survival.
***
“Your mom’s alive?” Iris asked Cory. “Are you sure?” Hell, maybe Cory was just as screwy as Allie was.
“Yeah, I’m sure. Allie and I just talked to her this morning. So, you see, you’ve got other family, and I’ve got other family, but Allie’s got no one except Papa. She’s worried sick about him, and she’s reaching out to us just in case he doesn’t come back.”
Iris could appreciate that, but she was still wrestling with the idea that one of Cosmo’s three wives was still alive. “Why’d the report say she was dead?”
Cory looked away. “I don’t know.” She spoke so quietly, Iris had to strain to hear her over the casino din. “Papa told me she died fifteen years ago. Five years later, I saw her in a store.”
“What did you do?”
“I was so shocked, I didn’t do anything. I thought maybe I was crazy at first, seeing things, you know? Papa never mentioned her, and she never contacted me. Then I got it—she’d left us, and Papa thought it was kinder to tell me she was dead than that she didn’t want me.”
Iris winced at the pain buried in her sister’s matter-of-fact explanation. “What does your mom say?”
“Today was the first time I talked to her, and only because I hoped she’d know where Papa was. I wouldn’t believe a
nything she says now, anyway. That’s why I want Papa back. He must know what happened, and I want him to tell me why she left.”
Iris could well believe that. “He’s a real piece of work, isn’t he?”
Cory turned on her, still adamant in her defense of the man they called father. “You’re pissed at him for leaving. Just remember, no matter how often he left, he always came back.”
Iris silently acknowledged that she wanted Cosmo to come back. She wanted answers, and now she understood she wasn’t the only one who had questions. “I’ve been selfish.”
“Damn straight,” Cory said. Then she smiled. “But we understand. Just cut Allie some slack, okay?”
“Yeah, sure.” Iris looked down the aisle and spied that long blond braid and the telltale black cargo capris and tank top. “Here she comes.”
“Wow, who’s the eye candy she’s got with her?”
With a groan, Iris recognized her cousin. “That’s Sergei, he’s—”
“She told me.” Cory stood up. “She sure knows how to attract men, doesn’t she?”
Allie’s eyes were bright with excitement as she approached. Sergei waved at them as he trailed her bouncy steps.
“Any signs of activity yet?” Allie looked back over her shoulder at the darkened interior of Lying Eyes.
“No,” Iris answered. “Where’d you pick him up?”
Sergei grinned. “Allie invited me to join her backstage for the show she works.”
That explained the spring in his step. A troupe of topless dancers would do that to a man.
He leaned forward as if to share a secret. “It has been a very eventful first day in America.”
“I’ll bet,” Iris said as Allie burst out laughing.
Cory shouldered forward. “Will someone introduce me, please?”
Sergei held out his hand. “With pleasure. Sergei Gorseyev.”
“Corazon Fortune. I’m Iris’s…” She trailed off and looked at Iris who rolled her eyes.
“Sergei’s not fooled. He knows Allie’s my half sister.” To Sergei, she added, “Cory’s my other half sister. And that’s another secret you get to keep.” With all the lies and secrets, she wondered if she’d ever be able to keep track of who knew what.
“Will my family ever get to learn how this came about, these half sisters?” Sergei’s pale eyes searched her face. He wasn’t invasive, just curious.
Iris smiled at her sisters, wanting for once to say the right thing. “We’re all looking for the real answer to that. For now, we just need to find our father.”
Sergei nodded. “How do we start?”
“We play slots.” Iris pulled some bills from her pocket and handed everyone a twenty. “And we wait.”
***
“Let’s hope it’s a security guard,” Cosmo whispered in the dark workroom. Thank God he’d stopped at the men’s room on the way here.
“I don’t think that’ll be much of an improvement for me today.” Mickey sounded decidedly unhappy with the situation.
The solid door opened with a brief rusty squeak.
“I told you I saw him come in here.” Cosmo recognized the voice but knew Jock didn’t waste that ingratiating tone on Pebbles.
The human steamroller filled the doorway, blocking any light from the hall. “Can I turn on the lights?”
“No.” The third voice came from behind the door. Apprehension rippled up Cosmo’s spine as he recognized Sam Turner. “Leave the lights off.”
Not that it mattered. Jock had already spotted him.
“Hiya, Cosmo. Pebbles and I heard you were pushin’ up daisies.” Jock’s gold tooth flashed in the light of the exit sign high on the wall.
Cosmo held his ground. It was an instinctual action, like maybe he could disappear into the scenery around him. But the workroom didn’t offer much in the way of hiding options. He stole a glance at the door to the sales floor.
Silhouetted by the few lights left burning behind him, Mickey made a classic target. He leaned as insolently against the doorframe as a silhouette could exude insolence. “Come on in, Turner.”
“Kincaid.” Turner pushed the door closed behind him. “Either you were mistaken about having killed Fortune, or you don’t have a good understanding of what death means.”
“I’m sure you’d like to teach me the error of my ways.”
“What, did I walk into a gangster movie?” Cosmo asked loudly. Mickey didn’t deserve to die, not for helping Iris.
“What do you want us to do, Mr. Turner?” Jock asked.
“Take Fortune out to the car. We have some unfinished business with him.”
Pebbles came forward, but Cosmo knew better than to allow the giant to lay a hand on him. He conjured up a deck of cards. “Sure, boys, I’ll walk out with you.” But when Pebbles reached for him, he sprayed the deck in the giant’s face. “Fifty-two pickup!” He made a dash for the front door while the cards were still fluttering to the floor.
Of course, this meant getting by Mickey, but he thought the kid would work with him once they had a diversion. Pebbles hunkered down to gather cards, and Jock swatted at the big guy’s shoulders. They had ample opportunity to run.
Was Mickey running? No, he’d drawn his gun. What, like he thought he was Humphrey Bogart? Didn’t he understand you didn’t draw a gun on Turner unless you expected to get—
BANG!
—shot? Cosmo careened past Mickey, bumping into him and knocking him off balance. Or maybe that hadn’t been him. Maybe—
“Cosmo, get out of here.”
“Did he get you?” Hell, now even he was talking like this was freakin’ Casablanca.
“Don’t worry about me. Get to Iris—take her to the police. You two need to be safe.”
Cosmo reached out to steady the younger man, only to feel the sticky warmth of blood.
Mickey was hunkered down, peering into the workroom. Though injured, he seemed steady and alert.
“Come on, Mickey boy, I’ll get you out of here.”
“No, I need to take Turner. Now, go!”
Cosmo hesitated. Now, there was a bad sign. He’d always known when to retreat. He’d made a career out of disappearing. And both those opportunities had come and gone—what was he still doing here?
“I can’t leave you.”
“Jesus, Cosmo, don’t be a hero. Get the hell out of here.”
A shot ricocheted off the doorframe near Mickey’s head.
Cosmo launched himself back into the workroom. Running as fast as his bow legs would carry him, he nearly tripped over Pebbles, who was still kneeling on the floor, covering his own head. Poor dolt—loved the look and feel of guns, but never liked the sounds they made.
“Come on, Pebbles.” Cosmo hefted the larger man. Their velocity and weight carried them forward until they knocked into Jock.
Yeah, Jock and Pebbles were expendable. Getting them out of here would help even Mickey’s odds. Cosmo judo chopped Jock across the shoulder. To his amazement, the cheesy move Allie had taught him worked, and Jock dropped his gun. One kick sent it skittering across the floor.
Cosmo didn’t waste time going after it. He dashed for the back door. “Jock, Pebbles, come on. Turner told us to wait in the car.” He ducked into the corridor, a hunted fox only a few steps ahead of the hounds.
Fortunately, the hounds were none too bright. But the long, straight, well-lit corridor would give them ample time to catch—or shoot—him. As the door behind him opened again, Cosmo made a dash for the casino.
Dragging breath into his burning lungs, he ran like a madman. At least Mickey had had a weapon. Cosmo had nothing but his wits. If he didn’t make it to his car first, he’d wind up dead.
Heavy footfalls thundered behind him. “Cosmo, stop!” Jock yelled.
Like hell! Cosmo smashed through the doors that opened from the service corridor into the carpeted hallway connecting the shops to public restrooms and an exit. It was tempting to head outside, but the fastest way to the parking garag
e was through the casino and lobby. Besides, he might just lose these guys in the crowd.
He turned and sprinted toward the main walkway through the casino, his path taking him past Iris’s storefront.
“Cosmo!” The woman’s shout made him falter. Turning to look, he spied Iris, shock splattered on her face.
“Can’t stop!” He hooked a thumb behind him and kept running.
Iris was a smart girl. She’d figure it out.
Chapter Eighteen
It had finally happened. Iris had flipped.
There was no way she was seeing Cosmo running through the Bellagio, his wild silver hair sticking up like some mad professor. He wore a light blue jumpsuit that looked like paint coveralls or maybe a janitor’s uniform. His feet pumped away in a pair of orange high-tops.
She was still dumbfounded by the image when she saw Jock and Pebbles barreling after him. “Oh my God, come on!” Without hesitation, she lunged in pursuit. She only hoped the others would follow.
People dove out of their path, the way already cleared for the most part by Pebbles’s bulk. What he lacked in speed, he more than made up in presence. Iris felt confident she could catch them. But then what?
Foote pulled abreast of her. “What’s going on?” He didn’t even have the grace to sound winded.
Iris pointed at the two men running ahead. “Those…are my…kidnappers.”
“Got it.” He picked up speed. “Halt! Police!”
Jock faltered as he looked over his shoulder. Realizing he was being chased, he took off with a burst of renewed energy, drawing ahead of Pebbles. The two of them veered off the main walkway between banks of slot machines.
Foote dashed after them.
Iris slowed, realizing she’d lost sight of Cosmo. Her sisters caught up to her.
“Where’s Papa?” Cory asked.
Iris shook her head while she dragged breath in to her lungs. If she tried to speak, she might throw up.
A commotion between two crowded craps tables made the others crane their necks, but Iris had gone cold with worry. Where was Mickey?
“Let’s check that,” Cory said.
“I’ve got to find Mickey.” Already, Iris was striding back toward her store. Out of breath or not, she broke into a run. She fumbled in her jeans pocket for her keys as she reached the front doors.